Surviving Spouse Needs to Look Carefully at Social Security

The article describes the situation of a friend of the authors, who was unexpectedly widowed when her husband died at age 44 of a massive heart attack and was left with a toddler, a teenager, insufficient life insurance and household income that had been cut in half. She managed with the help of Social Security benefits.

Now that she is planning her retirement, she’s struggling to get to the heart of her benefits as a surviving spouse. She’s not the only one facing this issue.

Her financial advisor recommended that she claim her survivor Social Security benefits when she retires next January and then switch to her own benefits at age 70, when the amount has maxed out.

Three separate calls to Social Security Administration representatives resulted in three incorrect answers. They told her that she was not entitled to survivor benefits, because her own retirement benefits were larger. Each reported that there were new “deemed filing” rules that require anyone born after Jan. 1, 1954, to file for all available benefits at the time of the claim. They also said that people who are born after that date are no longer allowed to claim one type of benefit first and then switch to another.

This misconception was based on an old file and switch method that was changed and is no longer available. However, the change does not apply to survivor benefits. The agents did not know the difference.

Earlier this year, an internal Social Security Administration report found that agents and representatives gave widows and widowers incorrect advice 85% of the time, based on random samples of claims by surviving spouses, who were also entitled to claim their own retirement benefits.

Social Security had been a blessing for the widow, as she received dependent benefits for two children as she struggled as a single parent. When the kinks were worked out, she was pleasantly surprised to learn that her survivor benefit was much larger than anticipated, given the short span of her late husband’s working years.

However, this incident and the statistics from the study should serve as a warning to those about to navigate their own journey for Social Security survivor benefits. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, call more than one time and visit the Social Security website to get information on your benefits.